Quickness sparks Wolverines past foe from Durham, N.C.

HAMPTON — All night long, the Woodside girls seemed a little sluggish and off their game. But the Wolverines could always rely on being at least one step quicker, which carried them to a 62-36 win over Jordan (N.C.) High in Thursday night's quarterfinals of the Boo Williams/Ronald Curry Christmas Classic.

Woodside (6-1) forced 22 turnovers and sucked the Falcons into a running game, which would be no contest. Adrienne Motley scored 26 points on 11-for-19 shooting and the Wolverines coasted into a semifinal matchup against Stonewall Jackson of Manassas, which beat Orangeburg (S.C.) Thursday, in the top bracket.

"Coach (Mike Tallon) said we would be quicker than they were, and we worked our quickness to the ball," said Motley, who had six steals along with five assists. "We got to the pass slower, and for the next game we have to work on denying the ball."

Tallon's homework on the Falcons, who are from Durham, N.C., said they have a dangerous shooter in Bayley Coleman-Cox and a solid post player in 6-footer Salita Green. Coleman-Cox, who has signed with Hampton University, scored 18 points but was 6-of-15 from the field. Green finished with only five points.

Though Motley missed a few jumpers she normally drains, she was unstoppable getting to the rim. Aianna Kelly scored 12 points despite having battled the flu recently and Daquila Washington added 10.

Woodside took a 27-17 lead on Motley's runner off the glass with 2:07 remaining in the second quarter. The Wolverines kept the margin in double digits the rest of the way.

"It was a decent effort," Tallon said. "We weren't very good from the free-throw line (8-of-14). I'm glad we got the win, but I thought we were a little lethargic. We did a good job with some things."

Tallon was happy to see Washington be more aggressive with her jumper.

"She took 10 shots, and that's good for her," Tallon said. "She's got the tools."